


Why shouldn't I wear the crown?

by o7salutelmanberg



Category: Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Dream Team SMP Angst (Video Blogging RPF), Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-09
Updated: 2021-02-19
Packaged: 2021-03-15 04:40:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 3,663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29308164
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/o7salutelmanberg/pseuds/o7salutelmanberg
Kudos: 1





	1. INTRODUCTION

I'm here to supply y'all with SBI content, angst and love.

The plot is loosely based off the actual story of the SMP but some things are headcanon or not in the actual order to fit my story plot. 

Starts in The Doomsday War (6th January 2021) and may contain future spoilers.

Please point out any errors in grammar/spelling. 

Please don't repost my content without asking me first.

If you enjoy consider voting and commenting.

Any suggestions are welcome.


	2. CHAPTER 1

A soft glow was emitted from the surrounding lamps around the room. Some chests lay cracked open, others still bolted shut. Weapons hung on the walls and at the figure's feet. He ran his hands through his pink hair before pulling a red cloak around his shoulders. A yellowing skull mask sat on the bench in front of him, the hollow eye sockets staring back up at him. He leaned over the bench, putting all his weight through his arms onto the wooden slats. A soft groan escaped his lips as he hung his head. 

A cold breeze rushed through his bones as the bunker's door swung open. The quiet buzz of the lanterns was swallowed by a sudden loud collection of screams from outside.

"Techno - " the man panted, clutching onto a bundle of TNT. "We're losing."

"You think I can't tell?" 

"Son, come on. The war is ruining everything. We are going to have nothing at the end of this."

"Phil?" The cloaked man turned on his heel, towering above the smaller man. "I'm not your damn son anymore. I'm not six years old and vulnerable. I'm not small and in need of protection. I'm not scared and alone."

Phil collapsed on the floor, dropping the TNT in his lap and resting his head in his palms. "I was wrong. I already have nothing."

"You have your farms?" Technoblade suggested awkwardly, kneeling down to unlock a chest.

Phil scoffed in response. "Yes, I'm just going to replace my children with potatoes."

"Potatoes are delicious, Phil. The waxy texture that coats your tongue when you bite into it? Glorious."

Phil lifted his head, "You don't bake your potatoes?"

"Huh?" 

"Oh my goodness-" 

Phil was interrupted by another man stumbling through the door as a loud boom erupted outside. The makeshift bunker shook and dirt crumbled above them. The man turned a bloody sword over in his hand, watching droplets of the red liquid fall into a small puddle on the ground. His eyes were obscured with a smiling mask, turned grey from the smoke. However the distinct shape of a smile still poked through. The black line on the mask perfectly mimicked the man's expression slapped on his face. His mouth curling up at the corners, blood running down his skin from a wound on his cheek. 

"Who's blood is that?" Techno asked.

"Well wouldn't you like to know?" 

"Dream, you were in charge of the bombs. Why were you attacking people on the battlefield?" Phil got to his feet, brushing the mud from his trousers before taking the sword. Dream scowled with reluctance.

"Friend's." 

"What the hell, Dream!" Phil was exasperated. 

"We told you not to let you get your emotions in the way. Head not heart, you bastard. We're tearing a nation to the ground, destroying the tyranny of governmental power, not killing people's pets." The pink haired man finally got to his feet, throwing several dark coloured skulls at Dream. "You're getting back out there and blowing down The Oracle with me." 

Techno pulled his hair back into a braid in a smooth swift motion before pushing Dream toward the door. He grabbed the axe that hung on the wall and pulled the leather strap of the rocket crossbow over his torso. 

"We are here for business, Dream. Remember that." Phil pushed his hair out of his face and replaced his helmet. 

As Techno pulled the door open to allow the group to leave, a tall figure with blonde hair tumbled into the room. He steadied himself before he fell into Dream who stood in front of the group. He pushed himself up and straightened a green bandana that hung around his neck. His shirt was torn and covered in blood and dirt and his breathing was not consistent. 

"Tommy," Dream snarled. 

The young man shoved Dream backwards, making him trip over his feet slightly. 

Phil shifted his weight onto the other leg and looked away from Tommy.

"You bastard. You ruined me when I was in exile. You hurt me and took away everything I had." Tommy jabbed his index finger into Dream's chest.

"I came to visit you every day though. I was the only one that was ever there for you. I'm your only friend. Remember Tommy?" Dream's voice had changed. No longer was it cold and full of fury. There was an unsettling calm tone to his voice that was unusual for Dream. He seemed soft and warm as he spoke to the young man in the doorway. 

"Quit it. Quit manipulating me." 

"I'm not manipulating you, Tommy. I'm being a friend and caring for you because nobody else will. Nobody else gives a damn. Not even your own father." 

Phil turned back to the group. "Keep your fucking mouth shut, you slimy bastard." 

Tommy stepped back and dropped his arms, a look of utter despair crossing his face. 

"I cared about you, Tommy. You just betrayed me," Techno added. "I was there for you after you escaped exile. I helped you, gave you everything. But you only cared about material objects, the discs, not your friends or important values."

"Because you were going to blow up the only place I could ever truly call home and feel safe in? Yeah, I betrayed you. Fix your facts, Techno." Tommy scoffed. "Me and Wilbur didn't want it to end like this. We made a place where people could be free from tyranny."

"I'm not saying it's your fault, Tommy. I'm not blaming you. But L'Manburg is now a government. There are no freedoms. It has to be destroyed. You replaced one dictator with another. Schlatt then Tubbo. Who next? Yourself? What sort of democracy is that? The country has torn so many people apart, Tommy." 

"We can fix this Techno. Please. It's my home."

"I'm sorry, Tommy. You knew my plan from the beginning. You knew that I was going to destroy The Oracle. You knew that I was going to tear down this country from the moment we met in the pit." 

"Fuck you, Techno. FUCK YOU!" Tommy shouted in Techno's face, making Phil wince.

"Tommy?" A soft but firm voice weaved it's way through the smokey air into the bunker. The group followed the sound to see another figure floating over the doorway. He was pale and his cloak was stained red with blood in his torso area. 

"Wil?" 

"Tommy, it's over. Let it happen. You're powerless." 

"Will, we created this place together…" 

"I know Tommy. But I think you're forgetting that I was the first person to completely tear apart the nation. Eleven craters of TNT, placed in the tunnels under the city. It's not the place we created, Tommy. It's become the one thing we swore to destroy: tyranny." 

Tommy stuttered over his words, trying his best to form a coherent sentence.

"It's not my L'Manburg anymore. Farewell Tommy." 

The ghost faded into the smoke, disappearing completely. Apart from the smell of freshly baked bread.

A moment of silence passed as the group stood still. 

"I had three children. Now I have none. I've either killed them myself or they've disowned me," Phil sighed.

"Tommy?" A smaller figure emerged from the smoke, coughing and spluttering, while keeping an arm up to his eyes for protection.

"Tubbo?" Tommy turned away from the door and ran towards his injured friend.

"Ugh, government," Techno groaned. Dream and Phil let out a small chuckle in response. 

"Theseus?" Techno called out. Tommy ignored him. "Remember what happens to heroes." 

The pair in the smoke walked off, Tommy's arm around Tubbo's shoulder in aid. 

"Time to destroy a nation." 

Techno pushed Dream out of the door and onto the battlefield. The sound of screams and explosions was louder than ever, but the smoke obscured any idea of who the agonising noises came from. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WORD COUNT: 1307
> 
> Authors Note:
> 
> Hey y'all !! Hope you're doing well. If you enjoyed I'd be grateful for votes or comments. Love you <3


	3. CHAPTER 2

The trio marched up to The Oracle, clutching their weapons with their heads held high. Once upon the podium, Dream stacked the dark skulls into a pile against the wall. The pearly white quartz of the building was stained red and the windows were smashed. The floor was uneven and destroyed. Piles of rubble at the group's feet along with discarded TNT cases. 

Techno set down the things in place needed for what was to follow. Technoblade placed down some soul sand before pushing past Dream. He took three of the dark skulls in his arms and handed on to each of the group. Techno, Dream and Phil now stood side by side over a once great nation. 

“Down with L’Manburg, men.” Techno muttered under his breath. Placing down a skull, he stepped back after the other two followed. 

“Down with L’Manburg.” 

A few moments passed before a large creature spawned in front of the group. It rose from the sand, shaking its heads clean of the sand while emitting a soft blue glow from the flames in its eyes. It’s bones rattled against each other while it shrieked into the smoke of the battle. The monster’s roars overpowered any noise coming from the fighting armies below. 

“Release the Withers!” Technoblade yelled in unison with the Withers, raising his arms in victory above his head. He adjusted his crown and pulled his cloak tighter across his chest to protect from the cold winter air. 

A succession of explosions suddenly rumbled through the ground and the dirt flew up into the sky. Rocks and mud along with once happy places that people called home, were burst into a thousand pieces. 

“I’ll be right back.” Dream pulled his mask further down his face and jumped down from the podium and into the battlefield. He snaked around the burning buildings and trees towards the centre of L’Manberg. On the ground, with his head against the trunk of the giant oak, sat Fundy. In his arms lay an ornate guitar. Dream watched as Fundy strummed softly, carefully picking the strings. A quiet melody soon accompanied. The tune was instantly recognisable and caught Dream off guard. 

I heard there was a special place  
Where men could go emancipate

Dream remained hidden behind a pile of rubble and clutched his sword. 

The brutality  
And tyranny  
Of their rulers

Fundy paused for a moment to push his ginger hair out of his face. 

Well, this place is real you needn’t fret  
With Wilbur, Tommy, Tubbo, fuck Eret

At Wilbur’s name, FUndy seemed to choke over his words, holding back tears. 

It's a very big and not blown up L’Manberg.

Dream stepped out into view, his shadow putting Fundy into shadow.

“I think you should change the lyrics, Fundy.” 

Fundy looked up to Dream and shivered, his fingers visibly trembling.

“The last line should be: A very big and, a little bit blown up, L'manburg.” Dream added. “Especially considering that you’re sitting next to the edge of the giant crater. L’Manhole? Yeah, I like that.” Dreamed sneered at Fundy whilst gesturing at the pit behind him.

“I’m not scared of you Dream.” Fundy’s fox ears twitched.

“I never said you were. I’m just here to take the flag and destroy it.”  
“You do that, Dream. Just destroy the nation and then rub it in everyone’s faces. I swear you purely do it because you enjoy it.”

“Mhmm.” The corners of his mouth curled up yet again, even though Fundy was unable to see the evil grin. “You missing WIlbur?”

“Oh, you bastard. Get the fuck away from me.”

Dream shrugged and climbed the tree that Fundy sat against. He started to hum the anthem as he edged his way along the main branch. 

“You have no right to sing that.” Fundy sounded hurt but DReam ignored him.

“You know, I was thinking, why don’t we change some of the other lyrics?” Dream started to sing, his mellow voice mocking the ex-citizens of L’Manberg. 

Well, I heard there was a special place  
Where men could go and emancipate  
The brutality  
And tyranny  
Of their rulers  
Well this place was real and now it's gone  
Techno and Dream planted a bomb  
It's a very big and definitely blown-up L'Manberg

“Fuck you Dream,” Fundy pushed up off the ground and to his feet.

“What?” Dream whined. “I thought it was pretty good.”

Fundy pulled the guitar strap over his shoulder and walked off. 

“You’re not going to watch me burn the flag? What a shame.” Dream stabbed the fabric of the flag with his sword before tearing it from the branch on which it hung. The coloured fabric floated to the ground and landed on the ground in the embers from the fire. Dream swung down from the tree and landed crouched before picking the flag up in disgust. 

He made his way back to the podium where Techno and Phil were sharing a couple of words. Dream pulled a box of matches from his pocket before holding the fabric of the flag between his clenched teeth. Striking a match, the flag went up in flames, illuminating his masked face.

"It was never meant to be." 

Dream waved the flag around his head like a maniac, while it burned. The blue stripe of freedom and liberty? No more. The white stripe of peace? No more. The red stripe of bloodshed for independence? No more. The yellow and black accents of the nation's walls? No more. L'Manburg? No more. It was a fallen nation.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WORD COUNT: 895
> 
> Author's Note:
> 
> I hope you're all doing well and you enjoyed the chapter. More SBI content to come, mostly just setting the scene at the moment. And a question for you: who are y'alls comfort streamers?
> 
> Lots of love <3


	4. CHAPTER 3

An overwhelming stench of smoke and burning filled the group's nostrils in the evening on the battlefield. Sounds of explosions and pain had now subsided but had been replaced with a low humming noise. The noises of war rang in each individual's ears as they trudged back to their ruined homes. The ex-members of the fallen nation attempted to search through the rubble and gather the little possessions that they had remaining and nobody spoke apart from the occasional pleasantry or string of comforting words. Slowly everyone started to move away from the crater to gather resources to allow them to rebuild a place of safety. 

Technoblade grew tired and decided that he was going to head back to his winter cabin in the tundra for rest. Previously flying around the crater, observing the damage that the three of them had caused, Phil agreed to head back with Techno. He glided down to join Techno pulling his wings shut.

"We'll see you around, Dream. Remember that this was purely business and there is no alliance between us," Technoblade confirmed.

Grunting in response, Dream began to walk in the opposite direction to the other two men while swinging his netherite sword around.

Techno started to head down to the bunker to collect weapons and other things before Phil stopped him. 

"There's one thing you should be wary of, Techno."

Techno raised an eyebrow, urging Phil to continue.

"There's an Enderboy in the bunker. I found him shaking on the battlefield and he wasn't part of L'MAnberg so I offered him safety."

"I see. Does he have a name?"

"He was speaking Enderman when I found him but he was carrying a journal that was signed: Ranboo."

Techno pushed open the door of the bunker to find an enderman hybrid quivering in the corner of the room. Even though he was crouching, his head still hit the ceiling. A small crown perched in the mess of his hair and his red and green eyes emitted a soft glow. What Techno could only assume was the book that Phil mentioned prior, lay at Ranboo's feet next to a small grass mound. 

Techno avoided the Enderboy and gathered his things up into the pockets in his cloak. 

"I was hoping that he could stay with us?" Phil asked, ruffling his wings, shaking the soot from the glossy feathers. 

"You can trust him?" Techno seemed wary. 

"Mostly. If he starts acting suspicious we can ask him to leave."

The pink haired man was hesitant. "I'm not sharing the house with another enderman but he can stay nearby. Set up residence near the mountain."

Phil nodded, "I'll meet you back at the cabin."

Techno left Phil and the stranger behind in the bunker, heading towards the portal to the Nether. Every time he stepped through the purple division between the two worlds, a strange sensation ran through his body. The Nether felt comforting to him, almost as if he belonged there. The heat that radiated from the lava, the gold that caught his eye time and time again, the blood red vines that grew down from the trees. It felt like a place he could be safe in. As he walked along the carved out pathways, he greeted the piglins covered in gold. They lowered their crossbows and swords before continuing to mine the gold ore in the netherrack caves. Piglins always seemed to treat him like royalty, showering him in gifts of gold. The material was the most desired thing in their species, even if it was quite common compared to the Overworld. His friends often asked him to bring back gold jewellery or scraps and he often denied. He felt as if he was being taken advantage of due to his luck in the Nether. 

However a few people had possession of a hand crafted gold ring. He had made four of them about five years ago. The memory was a fond one but it brought sour thoughts to his mind when he now thought of it. He fiddled with the band that wrapped around his index finger. The embossed initials of the other three people rubbed against the rough skin of his fingertip. He didn't understand why he still wore the jewellery piece but he didn't understand why he couldn't take it off either. Along with Phil's friendship emerald that he'd added to his crown,he never went anywhere without the ring. 

Once back in the cabin, Techno collapsed in an armchair. He kicked the snow off his boots and began to take off his armour. His skull mask and crown rested on the mantelpiece above the blazing fire place. He slowly thawed his body and stretched out his aching muscles before tending to the little wounds that grazed his body. 

Through the window, the soft yellow rays of the morning sun started to peek over the horizon. Technoblade yawned and took a sip from the mug he held between his palms. The door to the cabin swung open as a white bear pushed his nose against the spruce wood. The animal plodded over to Technoblade and rested his head in the man's lap. Technoblade ruffled the bear's fur between his ears and scratched his chin making the animal growl softly.

== The soft notes of an instrument being played filled my ears, the strumming of chords and the quietly sung melody. The guitarist sat on the stairs opposite Techno, concentrating heavily on the music. Meanwhile a loud smashing noise came from above the pair. The small boy tripped over his feet before coming to a halt at the top of the stairs. He held a wooden sword by his side and an expression of guilt was slapped on his face. Another man walked into the room and stared up the stairs. He had dark circles under his eyes and his facial hair was scruffy and overgrown.

"What did you break?" He spoke with a soft tone but still failed to hide the slight anger.

"A window." 

I got to my feet and went to investigate. 

"You fool." I ruffled the boy's hair making him groan as he tried to dodge my grasp, failing.

"That's the second time this month," the guitarist added, still sitting on the stairs. 

"Remind me why I gave you that sword?" the tired man said. In response, the youngest boy shrugged and ran past the three of us, screaming strings of curse words.

==

"What's Steve doing in the house?" Phil walked through the doorway, locking it behind him. Technoblade was brought back from his thoughts.

"You're back."

"And you didn't answer my question." 

Technoblade shrugged, starting to unbraid his hair. 

"Can I?" Phil asked carefully.

Techno shrugged again but stood from the armchair. Steve, the polar bear, moved out of the way but remained by his side. After Techno gestured to the seat, Phil took that as a yes and sat down. Techno sat with his back to Phil at his feet.

The repetitive motion of untangling each of Techno's braids, calmed Phil. The silky hair that fell between his fingers brought back memories of the times he'd done this for years before. Both of them were deep in thought and only shared the rare passing comment until the ritual was complete. Techno thanked him gruffly and went to get another mug of hot chocolate. 

The sweet smell filled his nostrils as he stirred the brown drink. He stood in a trance for a minute, staring out at the nearly risen sun. Shades of nature's beauty coated the hills of the landscape and the light was warm on his skin and the corners of his lips curled up ever-so slightly. 

"I made you hot chocolate." 

"Mmm, my favourite," Phil chuckled. "Thank you." He took the mug from Techno, blowing on the drink causing ripples to spread along the surface. However before he could take a sip, Techno stopped him. He took the mug away from Phil and placed it on the stack of history books next to them. The pink-haired man took the blonde's hand and raised it to the light. 

"The ring."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WORD COUNT: 1360
> 
> Author's Note:
> 
> Sorry for the long time to update. Hopefully the longer chapter can make up for it? I hope you're all doing well and I'm sending love! Thank you for reading.


End file.
